Thursday, August 11, 2011

staying focused

You see it with running quite often. Athletics in general is a field in which it is a struggle. After lunch work projects as well as a million plus other things all have in common the struggle with staying focused on the the task at hand. Whether it is fatigue, boredom, lack of interest, or any number of other valid reasons, focus at times is elusive. I am reminded of that right now. I am supposed to be focusing on finishing a message for this Sunday, but my mind is distracted.

I am distracted by hurt in the lives of people I care about. I am distracted by the regret of things undone and things that shouldn't have been done. I am distracted by monotony of being in a office alone. But it is fair to say I would be more distracted were I at home with a house full of boys. Side note. Ah I am distracted by what distracts me.

I have a gazillion things to do and at this point they won't get done. I don't necessarily fret over that because what is most important to me are the relationships with people we are meeting. I am thinking in my own life sometimes my focus is so set on the wrong things that I get aggravated when I am distracted by people. Ah but people are what really matter. So there is a positive slant to being distracted. We can't allow ourselves to be so focused we miss out on the people who need us most. I want to stay focused on that.

Last night we had dinner with new friends and what I heard from one of them was this, "I love this new church because it isn't about stuff, and big buildings, it is just real and people care". Not a word for word quote, but close. Wow! I asked that person to hold leadership accountable in remaining that way. To keep us focused on what matters most. Exalting Christ and connecting people!